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Microchipping

A quick microchip gives your pet a permanent ID and increases their chance of being reunited if lost.

Microchipping: A Simple Step That Can Bring Your Pet Home
Collars and tags are helpful, but they can fall off or become unreadable. Microchipping offers permanent, secure identification that can help reunite you with your pet if they’re ever lost.

This quick, one-time procedure gives your pet a voice when they need it most—and dramatically increases the chance of a safe return home.

What Is a Microchip?

A microchip is a tiny device—about the size of a grain of rice—that’s inserted just under the skin, usually between the shoulder blades. It contains a unique ID number that links to your contact information in a secure pet registry.

Important note: A microchip is not a GPS tracker. It doesn’t show your pet’s location in real time, but it allows shelters and veterinary clinics to scan and identify them if found.

How It Works

  1. A veterinarian injects the microchip under the skin with a quick, nearly painless injection

  2. The chip stays in place for life and requires no maintenance or battery

  3. When scanned, the chip shows a unique number tied to your contact details

  4. You register the chip with your contact info (we’ll guide you through it)

  5. If your pet ever ends up at a shelter or vet’s office, they’ll be scanned and matched to you

Why It Matters

  • 1 in 3 pets will go missing during their lifetime

  • Only about 20% of dogs and 2% of cats without microchips are reunited with their families

  • With microchips, return-to-owner rates increase significantly—up to 38% for cats and over 50% for dogs

Microchipping provides peace of mind that if the unexpected happens, your pet has a reliable way home.

When to Microchip

Microchipping can be done at almost any age, and we often recommend it during spay/neuter surgery to combine it with an existing procedure. But it can be done at any routine visit in just a few minutes.

We’ll also check your pet’s chip during exams to make sure it’s still in place and working properly.

Your pet depends on you to keep them safe—and microchipping is one of the simplest ways to do just that. It’s affordable, fast, and could make all the difference in a moment that matters.

📍Want to check your pet’s registration? Contact us, we’re happy to help.

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FAQs

Below are some answers to our most common questions.

Here at Gainesville Veterinary Hospital, fees cover what is done for the animal including an examination, administration of tests, diagnosis, treatment, and medications. Some problems can be long term or involve multiple and/or changing causes. Treatment may be ongoing. To an effect a cure is not always possible. You are paying for an honest attempt to diagnose and treat a problem. There is no implied guarantee.

Third-party health insurance is available for pets. As with human health insurance, Gainesville Veterinary Hospital advises you that different companies offer various levels of coverage which have a wide range of deductibles and premiums. There are also certain restrictions on which conditions, injuries, and procedures are covered. Please contact your veterinary facility, which may have more information on this type of insurance.

Gainesville Veterinary Hospital advises that to get a rabies certificate, only a rabies vaccination is needed. This law is in place to protect humans and animals from the spread of rabies. However, the vaccine cannot be administered without the animal first having received a physical examination. It is in the best interest of your pet to get a routine check-up plus all the necessary vaccines as determined by your veterinarian to maintain your pet's good health. There are many infectious diseases of animals, many of them fatal to your pet. The additional cost of the vaccines which prevent these diseases is often quite minimal. Administering vaccines is a safe, easy, and cost-effective way to prevent disease. Many veterinarians have written material on the recommended vaccinations your pet needs and would be happy to provide this to you.

Most puppies and kittens need basic health examinations, checks for parasites and vaccinations. Gainesville Veterinary Hospital will provide general estimates by telephone. If you check with a few hospitals, you will see that fees for similar services do not vary that much. When requesting an estimate you need to be sure exactly what you are getting for the fees charged, and whether there are additional costs for anything else.

Fees are set by each individual veterinary practice and each has different expenses that are covered by the fees charged (i.e., salaries, rent, utilities). Often, the different fees do not reflect the same set of services, although there may be certain basic procedures in common. Each veterinarian within Gainesville Veterinary Hospital sets the fees for services based on varying criteria, such as different drugs, anesthetics, antibiotics, medical techniques, and products, which may have a bearing on the cost of the service.

Not only is it unethical and illegal to prescribe for an animal that a veterinarian hasn't physically examined, but it is also impossible to come up with an accurate diagnosis and rational plan of treatment. A veterinarian here at Gainesville Veterinary Hospital can't make a diagnosis based on symptoms only as observed by an owner. The outward signs may be an indication of any number of internal causes with a wide variety of clinical treatments. A complete physical examination and other diagnostic tests are required to determine the cause of the symptoms and the best course of treatment.